Make your journey a little safer, more comfortable and more stylish with these car hacks, tricks, and tips.

1. Clean Your Headlights with Toothpaste

Place the toothpaste on a soft, nonabrasive cloth and buff. Not only will your car look like new, but you’ll also be able to see again too.

2. Cool the Car Without A/C

The dreaded Texas summer sun just turned your car into a sauna. Cool the car off quick—without cranking the A/C (and wasting gas).

Roll down one window and on the other side of car, open and close the door a few times. The movement forces the hot, stagnant air through the door, filling the car with colder air through the window.

3. Turn on the A/C while Defrosting the Windshield

A/C air is dry. Frost is moist. Designers took notice, so new cars do this automatically, but not older cars. Crank the A/C as warm as it will go and watch the dry, warm air do work.

4. Rubberbands – The Free Car Phone Stands

Thread the rubber band or hair tie through your air vent and ta-da! DIY phone holder, leaving you able to look up instead of down while navigating the city.

5. Muffin Tin Car Hacks

  • Place silicon muffin holders in your cup holders. When they get dirty, they are easily removed and washed.
  • Getting a ton of drinks to go? Bring a muffin tin for a simple DIY drink container. For extra stability, put the muffin tin in a box of laundry basket.

6. Make a Trash Can

Line a plastic cereal container with a plastic grocery bag or trash bag. Place on the passenger side floor for easy road trip access.

7. Removing Stickers — and their goo

Goo is annoying. The next time you remove a sticker, use newspaper.

Place the newspaper on the sticker and then apply warm water. Leave it for about 10 minutes. When you pull it off, the goo should come too.

8. Frozen Door Car Hacks

Cooking spray, your frozen door and winter season friend. Just spray the rubber gaskets on the inside of the door, removing the excess with a paper towel. The grease makes for a tighter seal and slippery surface, not ideal for water trying to pool and freeze.

9. Get Unstuck Without All the Digging

Find yourself in deep sand, mud or snow? Try deflating your tires, even down to 5 or 6 psi. Still stuck? Try using your floormats. But, make sure to tie them off and save yourself the hunt when they get launched 50 feet away.

10. Car Hacks for Kids

  • Use a shoe organizer to keep all the kid essentials in one place. Keep water cups, baby wipes, diapers, toys, and more easily accessible for when you need them fast.
  • Create a DIY iPad Holder with two elastic straps. Loop the straps of the headrest and slide the iPad in — keeping the kids entertained for the long drives to the grandparents.
  • Tired of crayons melting into the seats? Use an empty baby wipes container of a tubberware to keep all the coloring tools in one spot (that isn’t on your seats).